1 Abstract in the Autumn of 1555, After Almost a Decade of Decay, The
ENGLISH NAVAL EXPANSION UNDER THE FRENCH THREAT, 1555-641 Abstract In the autumn of 1555, after almost a decade of decay, the Marian regime decided to rebuild the English navy. With the encouragement of her Spanish husband, Queen Mary supported the new construction of three large carracks that would assist in the kingdom’s war against the substantial maritime forces of Henri II of France. Even with the potential insurance of Spanish military reinforcements from her husband, the French navy had expanded unprecedentedly under Henri II, forcing England’s maritime resources to their limits. This article will argue that it was these conflicts with France between 1557 and 1564 that forced the Marian and early Elizabethan institutions to endorse a policy of naval expansion. Keywords: Elizabethan navy, Marian navy, naval expansion, England, France, Henri II. Elizabeth I’s navy is widely upheld by historians as the tool that successfully defended England from the superior Spanish Armada. Infamous figures, including Sir Francis Drake and Sir John Hawkins, two of the queen’s most celebrated sea dogs, are now renowned English heroes. Moreover, the expansion of the realm’s maritime resources, 1 I would like to thank Professor Penny Roberts, Dr. Alan James, Dr. Gabriel Glickman and the anonymous reviewers for their comments on the earlier drafts of this article. 1 and the series of naval feats during the Spanish War, have carved Elizabeth I (1533- 1603) into history as the mother of the future Royal Navy, even if her willingness to use it was questioned at the time.2 This article however will not concern itself with this latter period of Elizabethan history, which has received wide attention since Sir Julian Corbett’s two volume series published in 1898.3 Instead, it covers a period that has drawn far less consideration both from scholarship and popular culture.
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